Mercival Starting Point

I'm trying to rationalize your being sent away and this far south. Veluna City is definitely a long way away, but I think I have something that could work.

The northern states are constantly at war with the Lands of Iuz to the north. Their armies are under a near-constant state of siege. Be that as it may, the Old One has trouble feeding his troops and so sends his emissaries far to the south in an effort to secure goods (food!) for his hordes.

Perhaps word has reached the church that Iuz has merchants down south looking to broker deals, and the church wants its veracity confirmed or denied. As such, you have been traveling south for weeks, moving along with merchant caravans and the like, ever watchful for those who would be doing the Evil One's bidding?

Not that you REALLY care, but it is the charge you were given.

Then we would just need, perhaps, which way you have gone, maybe some towns that you have been in, people you have met, and maybe most importantly, points of contact to send the information back to? Maybe someone in a nearby city temple that you send your reports to?

Love it, I can certainly work with that. I think Mercival was bumming around Gradsul for a while "making progress" on his mission until he started straining the hospitality of the local Raoan presence. Now, acting on a tip that pretty much fell into his lap, he's working his way down along the coastal road on his way to Saltmarsh.

I'll flesh this out a bit more in another post soon.

Don’t flesh out anything after Gradsul just yet. I have some ideas about how tips might ‘fall into your lap’. 😏